The Old Spark
by Bannanerz
Summary: Wes mysteriously leaves Rachael, but he didn't know she was pregnant. What happens when he comes back 5 years later? Rated T for language, and certain referances.


NanoWrimo Young Writer's Program Novel

_Rachael Alexis Parker_

_Before_

We met our senior year in high school. He moved from a small town in Montana, and needless to say, he was very overwhelmed with our large student body, and multiple story school. He was just stopped in the middle of the hallway, right before 5th period, looking blankly from a not-so-precise map of the school to his schedule. It was obvious no one was going to help him.

He was the infamous new kid, everyone had heard of him. Gossip spread like a wildfire around this place, thanks to Hallie Jordans. She was my partner is biology, and everything I knew about what went on in this school, I heard from her. I was surprised she didn't know his name, she knew everything. But she did know he was "smart, ya know?" And also that he was a foster kid, since his parents abandoned him when he was 3.

As I came up beside him, I tapped him gently on the shoulder, shocking him slightly. His smell was intoxicating; in the good _Ahh_ kind of way that you couldn't help but notice. "Oh, um… Hey." He said.

"Need help?" I asked knowingly. I was basically lost the whole first week of freshman year. He looked down, slightly embarrassed, but then turned to look me in the eye. I looked back in to his, though I wouldn't call them eyes. They were more like dark pools of chocolate.

"Yeah." He said quietly. "Yes, I do." He said again, more confidently. I smiled, taking the schedule he handed to me. I scanned down it, and realized, much to my shocked delight, that we had 4 of 6 classes together. This one, electricity, we shared. I smiled.

His name was Wesley Carter. But he told me to call him Wes.

I guided him through the crowded halls, weaving expertly through groups of people, and into the spacy shop that hosted only 1 electricity class and 4 wood working. I introduced him to , and went to take my seat before the tardy bell rang. I shared a table with Arwin Conraile, who was short and wore all black over his pasty white skin, which made him look half dead. Or half alive, depending on how optimistic you were.

Our teacher, bubbling with his usual over-the-top enthusiasm for the class, placed Wes in the only available seat; right next to me, and right across from Arwin. He gave me a big white-toothed smile as he took a seat. Then his eyes wandered to Arwin. I could tell he was trying not to stare, but it was hard. Arwin got a lot of strange looks, and I felt bad for him.

The days' lesson had to do with learning how to wire electrical outlets. We all sat there with our wires and outlets, trying to connect them. It was plain as day that Wes was having no troubles with this, and Arwin, well, I didn't know exactly what we were doing, but I knew enough to tell that what he was doing wasn't right. Helplessly, I looked down at the wires I had long since given up on, deciding I would never take up a career as an electrician.

I watched, out of boredom, and a bit of amusement, Mr. Forcum escort a kid out in to the hallway for shooting spit balls at him. Again. I wondered vaguely why he never got sent to the office, but decided it really wasn't worth the time.

My mind's hopeless wandering was cut short by a flame that had ignited in front of Arwin. It was already huge, and I wondered how long it had been burning. Feeding off the un-varnished wood table and the saw dust from the shop classes, it grew larger. A few girls screamed, while I merely jumped out of my seat in shock, backing away.

Wes already had the fire extinguisher out, smothering the flames, and I just watched as they were covered in thick white foam.

Another scream, a point to me, all happened in slow motion. I looked at my arm just in time to see a large hand patting down the flames that had burned through my hoodie. I quickly shed myself of the offending thing, letting it fall in a heap on the concrete floor.

Wes turned my body to him, taking my shoulders in his hands, forcing me to look at him, though I didn't exactly have a problem with that. "Are you okay?" He asked me.

I was shocked to hear how sincere and maybe almost worried his voice sounded. No one had ever talked to me like that. No one ever cared like that. It took a second to get all my senses together, and make sure I really _was_ okay.

Aside from a small burn on my forearm, where there was a matching hole on my hoodie, I was fine. I nodded. His soft eyes stared in to mine, hard, for a second longer, and then his hands slid off my shoulders.

The bell rang, and everyone fled the class, but I took my time exiting the room. I had lunch next, and since I broke up with Shayne, I didn't really have a place I "belonged". I was at my old beat up locker, turning the sticky dial, before I realized someone was standing next to my. Looking over, I realized it was Wes.

"Oh, hey." I smiled. People were staring at us. Whether it was because he was the new kid, or because he was extremely hot, I didn't know.

"Do you want to have lunch?"

And that was the beginning of what I though was going to be forever.

_Then_

I hadn't seen or talked to Wes in almost 6 years. I don't know why he left, but that he did, leaving me alone. And pregnant. Maybe it was fate. He wasn't mature enough to handle a child anyways. Not if he just got up and left for no apparent reason. He told his brother he was abandoning us, and told him goodbye. But he never told me anything. Not a number to call, or an address. For all I knew, he could have left our town in Chicago and went off to Antarctica. It was a likely possibility I would never know, and at this point, I wasn't sure if I wanted to.

Now, as I mulled over this fact for what seemed to be the billionth time this week alone, while my daughter, Allie, slept peacefully in her bed, I began to cry. I shed tears for my daughter, who has never, and for the foreseeable future, will never know a father figure. Allie had her figurative second-mom, Ashley and her husband of a year and a half, Michael. Allie has her few friends from school. And me. But she doesn't have a father figure in her life, and I know how much it is going to affect her when she gets older. My dad left me when I was 7, though I tried not to dwell on that fact much. He was an alcoholic, and it was probably best that he left.

I met Ashley in college. We were roommates, and we both got in on sports-related scholarships. Mine in volleyball, hers in soccer. We became fast friends, and then when Wes left and, inevitably, the news of my pregnancy got out, she helped me through it. She went to my doctors' appointments with me, and helped me pick out things for Allie to wear, and the paint for the nursery. She even conned Michael in to setting up the crib and rocker. She and Wes had a forced friendship, both trying to get along for my sake. Sometimes, they did get along. But it only lasted so long. So, when Wes left, she had no problems bitching about how horrible it was of him to leave. And for the most part, this is how I got my anger out. By bitching right along with her.

Allie and I lived in a modestly sized two story home, light paneling covers the outside of the house, with dark oak doors and window frames. The inside was very light and open, with many large windows, a large kitchen and living space with a nice fire place. There were three rooms, and at one point, Kelsey had lived with us, playing a huge part in raising Jamie.

Allie was a sweet girl, who was, like any other child, playful and energetic, but she was also calm and polite. Her energetic side, however, was always limited to her asthma. We tried not to worry about it much, and made sure she had an inhaler everywhere she went. With her birthday being tomorrow, I was mildly worried, but she knew her limitations, and I trusted her, so I tried not to worry too much.

God, her party, it seemed like she was getting so old so fast. Ashley would be coming over first thing tomorrow to help me decorate and prepare the food. Seeing as her birthday was July 4, we decided to incorporate a birthday party and an Independence Day party in to one. This meant that there would be many more people than at a normal small scale birthday party. And I could definitely use the help.

I knew that since our house was by no means sound proof, Allie would probably hear my crying, so I turned on CNN, a channel with such a boring mono-tone sound to it, that she would surely fall asleep out of boredom, if nothing else. Only a small portion of my brain paid attention to what was the screen, the rest of it was too busy trying to figure everything else out in life.

I sat there staring at the colorful screen for God knows how long before I heard the loud obnoxious door bell ring. I sniffed, drying the tears trickling down my face, not wanting to move from my comfortable position on the couch, but did so anyways. I didn't really want them to ring again and wake my sleeping angel. Who was this person anyways? Who would want to talk to me at…? I looked up at the clock to see it was nearing 12 a.m.

I was completely ready to chew out the person at the door, but as soon as it swung open I was shocked in to silence. There was a pair of painfully familiar eyes boring in to mine. I gasped audibly. "Wes?" I asked, blinking to make sure the image in front of me wasn't a hallucination.

"Rachael." He breathed, with a smile on his face. His scent was making my legs turn in to jelly.

"You left." I told him blankly, careful to keep all emotion out of my face and voice, while still managing to stay standing. I wasn't sure whether I wanted to beat the shit out of him for leaving, or kiss him senseless for coming back.

"I… I know." He looked down sheepishly. "Could I come in? We can talk about it inside." Speechless, I stood off to the side, allowing him to cross the threshold. I sat on the white sofa, and motioned him to do the same on the opposing couch.

If looks could kill, Wes would be lying dead across my couch right now. "Why'd you come back?" I asked him coldly, giving him what I hoped was a menacing glare. The truth was I couldn't decide if I wanted to pound the crap out of him for leaving, or kiss him senseless for coming back.

"I missed you." He told me, giving me an award winning smile that I always had the hardest time resisting. _No, Rachael_, I told myself. _You can't give in._

I snorted. "Right. What is the real reason you came back, huh? Did your girlfriend dump you?"

A look of confusion and shock crossed Wes's face. "What are you talking about?"

"The girl you left me for." I told him, my eye twitching in irritation. I wasn't stupid.

"There was never another girl. It was always you." And he said it with such sincerity; I almost wanted to believe him. Then I thought about Allie sleeping in the other room, and the thought was out of my mind as soon as it had come.

"And you left because…?" I trailed off, leaving him to fill in the blanks.

"I left because I was scared. You know how crappy my past relationships have been." And I did. I never really got the whole story, but I knew more than one had been busted for illegal drugs, then sent to a rehab center. "Then you started acting funny. You were all secretive. I had a girlfriend like that once, and she ended up cheating on me. With multiple guys. I just didn't want to go through the pain." I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath. How could he think I was cheating on him? He must have taken this moment of silence as confirmation, because he jumped up off the couch in to a standing position and spoke loud and clear, "Aha! You _were _cheating on me!"

I could feel the anger boiling inside me. I loved, maybe even still love, Wes. I stood, and walked over to him, standing inched from him. "You," I hissed, poking my bony finger to his broad chest, "don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, really?" He challenged, stepping forward, causing me to take a large step back. "What don't I know?"

"I was _pregnant_, you idiot!" I cried, tears forming. "Pregnant with _your _child. And you didn't have the time of day for us. You LEFT!" I screamed, falling back into the couch, allowing sobs to rack through my body.

"You were pregnant?" He whispered, taking the seat next to me, obviously not sure whether I would allow him to comfort me, or not.

"Yes…" I was interrupted by the creak of a door opening, and the sound of feet pitter-pattering across the floor over to us.

Allie had tears in her eyes. "Mommy, why are you yelling?" She asked me in her angelic voice. "I don't like it when you yell." And she didn't. She was a really sensitive, shy, and delicate child.

"Oh, baby, come here." I said, opening up my arms to allow her on my lap. She snuggled in to me, and then realized the presence of Wes.

"Mommy," She whispered in to my ear, "Who is that man?"

I smiled at her, welcoming the question. She had been extra curious about her father lately, and I guess now was as good a time as ever to introduce them. "Allie, do you remember the other day when you asked about your daddy?" I asked, receiving a nod in return. "And I told you I thought we would never see your daddy, right?" Seeing another nod I continued. "I was wrong. Sweetie, this is your daddy."

She looked at Wes for a minute, obviously gauging whether or not she liked him before she darted in to his lap. "Daddy." She sighed. Wes, who looked like his eyes might bulge out of his skull, took a second before accepting the gesture. When he finally came to terms with the situations, he wrapped his arms around her, and planted a kiss on her silky smooth hair. What I wouldn't give for one of the kisses.

We sat in the silence for a half an hour. Wes was admiring our daughter, who has fast asleep in his strong capable arms, and I was admiring our family. I smiled at the word family. Assuming Wes stayed around, which I hoped he would. We would be a family for once.

"She's a space heater, isn't she?" Wes asked suddenly. I hadn't noticed earlier, but he was beginning to sweat a little bit. It was true, though. Ever since she was a baby, she could never sleep with more than a thin blanket, or else she would get too hot.

I giggled at him for a second, before offering to take her to bed. "I, um… Would you mind if I tucked her in?" He asked, looking down nervously.

"Why would I? She _is_ your daughter, too." I pointed out.

"Yeah." He smiled, standing up, making sure Jamie was positioned comfortably. "My daughter." He paused for a second. "Can I carry her like this?"

Though, albeit she was in an awkward position, I highly doubted it would matter. "I think you're good. She can sleep in any position." He laughed at this, and started off for her room, when he looked at me.

"I don't know where her room is." He said, looking around.

I walked him to her colorful room, mostly pink and purple, with unicorns and fairies.

"What, no butterflies?" He asked, jokingly, as he gently laid her down.

"No, they scare her." I told him, seriously.

"Really?" He asked, looking around. "And the stuffed animals with the big eyes don't?" He asked, referring to her Rescue Pets. I shook my head, no. "Humph." And with one last look around, he left the room. I followed, and shut the door softly, as not to wake her.

As Wes looked around, I took this moment to look at him properly. He wore a worn but nice gray jacket, a pair of faded jeans, and his dark brown hair, perfectly rustled, complementing his skin tone, and blue eyes. As I looked him up and down, he turned to look at me, and asked, "What?"

"I just need to try something." I told him, walking towards him. His confusion made him even cuter. I was now just inches from him. I got on my tip-toes, put my arms around his neck, pulling him down to my level, and kissed him. Of course, it made it all the better that he kissed back. I broke it off, not wanting to get too carried away.

Smiling, I told him, "Yep. It's still there."

"What's still there?" He asked, clearly confused.

"The spark. The one I felt the first time we kissed." I said, matter-of-factly.

"I knew it was." He said smugly. "You were the only one doubting it."

"Anything I doubted in life is now officially un-doubtable." I smiled at the truth of my own words, but it was overtaken by a large yawn. It had to be at 1 a.m, and I had to get up early to get ready for Allie's party. I sighed. "Hey, I am exhausted, and I have to get up early to get ready for Allie's party, so I am gonna go to bed." My following yawn supported me.

"Allie's party?" He asked, eye brows creased.

"Oh, right. Yeah, Allie is turning 5 tomorrow. She is having a big party." His brow furrowed even deeper.

"Isn't tomorrow July 4th?" He asked.

"This party is a combo of both. But anyways, I am heading to bed." I said, getting ready to turn, when I noticed he looked torn. "What?"

"Where do you want me to sleep?" Wow. I must have been tired if I didn't consider where he was going to sleep. "I mean, I guess I could rent a hotel room…"

"Where do you want to sleep?" I asked, curiosity taking over.

"Well, I _want_ to sleep with you." He paused for a second, before starting again. "OK, that sounded bad." I laughed at this. "I don't want to do _that_. I just want to hold you…" He trailed off. "I completely understand if you don't want that." He listed off reasons why I wouldn't want him to hold me or even be near him for a few minutes while I watched him with an amused expression. He paused and finally took his eyes off of his feet, which had suddenly become very interesting, and looked at me. "What?"

"While you added to the list of reasons I should kick you out right now, I was waiting to tell you that I want you to hold me, too." I whisper-talked, blushing.

I awoke, in Wes's arms, startled by a high-pitched scream. At first I had thought it was Allie, and I felt a wave of fear pound through me as I jumped out of bed. Then, I realized the sound was much to non-child like to be from her. Adjusting my eyes to the sudden light, I saw Ashley, eyes wide, and mouth only shut by a hand firmly clamped over it.

Removing her hand from her mouth, eyes still as big a saucers, she pointed to Wes, then me. "You… Him…Bed…" She managed to choke out a few words before striding over to Wes, who was now standing, too, trying to get over the initial shock of the scream. Before I could process what was happening, Ashley's hand was colliding with Wes's face, making a satisfying _slap._" You son of a…."

"Ashley!" I exclaimed, thoroughly shocked. Sometimes I felt like I was her mother.

"What?" She asked, as though I had actually asked her to hit him. "He _left_ you, Rachael! For no reason, he just walked out of your guys' life," Wes tried to protest, but she gave him a look that stated that his mouth needed to be shut, and it needed to stay that way. It was obediently clamped shut. " And now you are telling me not to slap him? He needs some sense knocked in to him."

"It was a long night last night, so I will spare you the details, but he left for an understandable reason." She tried to interrupt, but I gave her a death glare. "Yes, there could have been other ways to handle the situation, but this is how it turned out."

"But…" She started.

"He wouldn't be here if I didn't want him here." I told her, calmly.

She opened her mouth to talk, but nothing came out. She looked at me, then Wes, then me again. I could tell she was analyzing me, and it was starting to freak me out. I looked to Wes, and he looked back, eyes wide, cheek where he had been slapped bright red. Then Ashley locked her eyes on Wes. She stared him up and down, which made me a bit uncomfortable, seeing that he was shirtless. Tan, toned _and_ shirtless. "So, you're back?" She asked, a smile spreading on her face.

Wes smiled back, unsurely. "Umm…Yeah?" He said, though it sounded more like a question than an answer.

"No." She said firmly.

"Huh?"

"No, you need a definite answer. You will not break Rachael's heart again, or that little girl sleeping in the other room. You got that? Either stay or don't, I could care less. All I know is that if a single tear shed from either of them is because of you, I will kick your ass." Her icy stare didn't even faze Wes.

"I am _staying._ I was a coward to leave, and I will _never_ hurt either of them, ever. I can promise you that." He said it with such confidence I felt my heart flutter for him. I realized then, that I had never stopped loving him. I may have been angry, upset, and disheartened by him leaving, but it never stopped my love for him. Cliché, but true.

She looked at him for another long but rewarding second. "Okay…" She said, hesitantly. "So does this mean you are helping with the decorations?" She asked, cheerfully. His eyes widened in horror. "No, never mind. You would probably just mess them up anyways." With that, she turned on her heel, and made her way to the closet, where we had put the decorations we had bought just the day before.

"Are you going to go help her?" Asked Wes.

"Yeah, in a few minutes." I yawned.

"You looked really tired," He commented. Obviously he was used to going to bed at midnight, and getting up at the crack of dawn.

"Thanks, Sherlock." I stuck my tongue out at him childishly. "Just let me take a quick shower, first."

It only took me a half an hour to shower and make myself look presentable, so when I walked out in to the living room, I was surprised by what I saw.

Streamers of red, white, and blue hung, swirled, and draped delicately from the ceiling. Fun confetti littered the coffee table artistically, while small American flags were stuck in every imaginable place. Although individually the items would seem oddly placed, together, they looked amazingly coordinated, and very festive.

I walked around a bit, looking for Mel and Wes. After a bit of exploring, and finding several new decorations, including a new wreath hung on the door, I finally found them in the kitchen. They didn't notice me walking in, so I hung back in the corner, to see what they looked like when I wasn't around.

Ashley, I could see, was getting started on some cupcakes, while Wes, was trying and failing miserably to make frosting, of all things. You add what, 4 maybe 5 ingredients? Looking up from her mixing, Ashley groaned out loud, put the bowl and spoon down, walking a few paces over to Wes, who was trying to, instead of putting in powdered sugar, put in cane sugar.

I was pretty sure it said powdered sugar on the recipe, so it made me curious as to how bad his baking skills were. Ashley, who didn't have a problem telling people things straight up, told him exactly this, but with a bit ruder approach. I had the hardest time to keep from laughing, it actually hurt.

"Wes, it says confectioner's sugar _right_ on the page!" She exclaimed, pointing to the page, and grabbing a bag of the correct sugar.

"Oh." He looked around for a second before asking, "Where is the "confectioner's" sugar, then?"

"Right here!" She said, holding the bag up right in front of his face.

"But that says powdered sugar." He pointed out, dimly.

She let out an exasperated sigh, closed her eyes, while she spoke quietly, trying to keep her cool. "It is the _same thing."_ I could practically see the light bulb go off in Wes's head when she said this.

He stared at it blankly for a second, and then got to work putting it in to his bowl, while Ashley went back to hers, shaking her head, mumbling something about Wes being incompetent. I was about to make my presence know when I heard the electric mixer come on, then a giant puff of powdered sugar explode in to the air, followed by a coughing fit from Wes.

In all fairness someone should have warned him not to do that. Thinking for a second, I realized that person should have been me. Between Wes's look of innocence and shock, and Ashley's of complete irritation, I couldn't help but laugh, quite loudly, out loud.

They both looked at me, and then at each other, neither of them so much as cracked a smile. Wow. Tough crowd. Then suddenly, Ashley was pushing Wes towards me. "Do something with him." She commanded. Her tone was so serious for such a non-serious situation; I was fighting back more laughter. But I did as I was told anyways.

It's funny. When you think of being an adult and having your own house, you think you will be in charge. You think you will be able to be the boss of yourself. Ever since Ashley came in to my life, I am slowly finding out that this is not the case. Not in the slightest.

After dragging Wes out to the shed, and making him give me a boost to the top shelf, we finally had everything we needed to get started. "So," Wes started as I began opening one of the many totes we had finally managed to drag out of the shed, "What exactly am I doing?"

"Well," I said through gritted teeth, trying to get the lid off of a very stubborn green tote, "I was hoping you might want to do some yard work for me?" I looked up hopefully, giving him an innocent smile.

"What kind of yard work?" He asked skeptically, eyeing the opened totes.

"The kind that involves mowing the lawn."

"Then what it all this for?" He asked, confused.

"I was thinking maybe this yard work could also involve a ladder and some twinkle lights?" I looked at me for a second of silence before I broke it. "Come on, you do this for a living! You have to be good at this!"

"Correction. I _did_ that for a living. And, I never decorated lawns. I just mowed, trimmed, raked, and fertilized." Now _he_ was confusing _me._

"You don't do that anymore?" I asked, as he pulled out several long strands of lights, eyeing them skeptically.

"Nope." He said, popping the "p". "I'm a mechanic now. Certified, and everything." He said, obviously very proud of himself.

"Really?" I mused.

"Yep. Are you still going to law school?" I sighed. That is what I had really wanted to do, be a lawyer.

"No."

"No?" He stopped his rummaging through the totes, and looked up at me. "I thought that was your dream."

"Having Allie changed everything. I ended up becoming an RN, specializing in neonatal nursing. Now that I think about it, I love life as it is. I wouldn't change it for anything. Not even to become a lawyer." He looked at me thoughtfully for a second.

"Interesting." What did him also become a shrink, too? "Anyways, I think I can do this, but you are going to have to tell me which trees you want these on, because I don't think there are enough." I chuckled at this. "What?"

"Do you see all the totes sitting on the side of the shed over there?" I asked, pointing to the stack of 20 totes. He nodded. "Those are _all_ twinkle lights. Needless to say, you have plenty to keep you busy." I smiled as he groaned. "I have to go help Ashley. Shout if you need any help." I told him as I made my way back in to the house. I stopped at the door, and turned around. "Oh, yeah. Michael is on his way over to help." Wes smiled. He and Michael had been best friends since 2nd grade.

About 4 hours later, around 11:30, I still hadn't heard anything from the boys, and people were going to be here at 1:00, so I decided to go check on him. When I opened the door, I was overwhelmed by what I saw. It was so breathtakingly beautiful. The lights were everywhere. They were in the trees, surrounding the porch, draping off of the top of the umbrella from the patio set. The lawn was freshly mowed, leaving behind the intoxicating scent. I breathed in and looked around!

"Oh, you guys! It's beautiful!" Wes turned and looked at me, giving me his signature charm smile.

"Really? You like it?" He asked, walking towards me.

"It took forever!" Michael complained, climbing off a latter.

"It's amazing! I _love_ it!" I told them with all honesty.

"I'm glad." He said, hesitantly wrapping his arms around my waist, pulling me towards him. I could tell he was reading my face to see if this was ok.

"Wes, it's ok." I could see relief fill his features as he bent down to kiss me. Soon, too soon for my taste, he pulled away. My mind came out of its haze that Wes always put me in to, and I remembered what I came out to tell him. "Hey, there is only an hour and a half until the party. Do you guys want to go grab a shower?"

"Do I really smell that bad?" Michael joked, coming up beside us.

"No. But you do have grass all over you." I pointed out to Michael. "And you have sap on your arms." I told Wes. He looked down to find his forearms covered in sticky sap. "And you_ both_ have twigs in your hair." I finished, watching them both reach up and brush a few out.

"Which shower do you want me to use?" Michael asked.

"The one in the guest bedroom is fine. There are towels in the closet. And I will have Wes bring up a fresh pair of clothes." I said. I looked over to see Wes's eye brows raised, teasingly.

"I guess I had better shower, too. I'm going to want to look presentable for your mom. I'm probably already on her bad side. There's no need to make it any worse."

"My mom is dead." I said, bluntly. His hand dropped from my face.

"No." He whispered. I nodded, involuntary tears rolling down my cheeks. "Oh, Rach." He muttered, soothingly. He pulled me in to his chest, and smoothed my hair out, in a vein effort to calm me down. We stayed like this for God knows how long before Ashley came out with Allie, who had woken up several hours ago, and decided to help Ashley cook. She had more patience for kids than she did Wes.

"Hey, Rachael… Oh, am I interrupting something?" She asked, taking in our hugging forms.

I shook my head, taking it off of Wes's chest, wiping the tears away. Luckily, Allie was too entranced by the lights to notice me, so I took the moment to duck inside and show Wes how to work the shower.

While Wes was getting ready, I decided to change out of my clothes, which were dirty from the morning of cleaning and cooking. I changed from a plain tee shirt and sweats to a baggy striped navy blue scoop-neck blouse, and a pair of light wash jeans. My dark silky hair, which had been tied up, now hung slightly curled and layered.

I was just finishing my make-up when Wes came in from the bathroom that Wes connected to the bedroom. He was only wearing a towel. "Uh… Rachael?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't… Uh, I don't have any clothes." Huh? I could tell that he sensed my confusions, because he continued, "I didn't think far enough ahead to bring clothes with me when I came back"

"Oh." I thought for a second. "I think I might still have some of the clothes you left."

A look of amusement crossed his face. "You kept my clothes?" He asked, smiling.

"Well, yeah." I said, quietly. He laughed quietly. I walked over to the closet, dragging the stool from my vanity with me to stand on as I pulled a box off the top shelf. It was, however, a bit heavier than I expected. Ok, that was an understatement. I was a _lot_ heavier than I anticipated, so heavy, in fact, it threw me off balance, and I began to fall over.

I let out a small squeal, and closed my eyes, bracing myself for the impact. But it never came. Instead, I felt myself fall in to strong arms, which held me close, bridal style. I opened my eyes to find Wes.

"Are you okay?" He asked, looking me in the eyes, the box forgotten. He used to tell me that my eyes gave me away when I was lying, and I could tell he was searching for the true answer in them.

"Yeah." I said, catching my breath. "Yeah, I'm good." This was my subtle hint for him to let me down so that I could give him his clothes. This was when I realized he was still only in a towel. "Wes, let me down. I have to get out there before people," I was interrupted by the doorbell. "Get here." I finished. He let me down, and I quickly threw a pair of jeans and an AC DC tee shirt, before dashing out of the bedroom to meet our guests.

By the time I saw Wes again, the party was in full swing. He was crouching down whispering something to Allie that made her giggle, before she ran back outside to play. That was when I noticed something familiar on Wes. "Wes, is that my belt?" I couldn't help but laugh.

He smiled heartily, and stood up, walking closer to me, most likely to hear me better over the noise of all the people. "Yeah." He chuckled. "It's huge!" He exclaimed.

"Thanks." I muttered.

"Sorry, I didn't…" I cut him off.

"No, it's fine. I wore it while I was pregnant. _I_ was huge." I laughed. We talked for a few minutes before I was interrupted by someone screaming my name. I spun to find Michael running in with Allie in his arms. She was wheezing and coughing.

"I don't know what happened. She was just running around and all of a sudden she stopped and started coughing." He blabbered, setting her on the sofa in front of me.

I fished her inhaler out of my pocket, and sat next to her. "Take a deep breath in." I told her, helping her to use the inhaler. After a few puffs, she was done coughing and wheezing, and began to breathe normally. "Are you ok, sweetie?" I asked.

She nodded. "I'm fine, mommy." She looked around for a second before asking, "Can we have cake now?" I laughed. Not a minute after suffering from an asthma attack, she was asking for cake.

I smiled, and replied, "Sure, sweetie." I walked with her to the table, sat her down, and went to retrieve the cake. When I set it on the table, and placed the candles in it, everyone had gathered around. I realized that I had forgotten a lighter.

"Does anyone have a lighter?" I asked, not to anyone in particular. I saw Wes come out of the kitchen, towards me, carrying a lighter. He held it up for me, showing me he had one. He walked over, and refused to let me use the lighter, insisting he was perfectly capable of lighting a few candles by himself.

Of course, Allie reminded him it was 5 candles. Who could forget? As he was attempting to light the candles, he somehow managed to burn himself, and just barely contained himself from letting out a few profanity words.

As he tried, once again to light the candles, he knocked a few over. "Over for the love of all that's holy." I muttered, taking the lighter from him, lighting all the candles in a matter of seconds, and getting a chorus of Happy Birthday started. This had earned laughter from several people, including Allie, who was very entertained by Wes's attempts at lighting her candles.

When the song was sung, I leaned down next to Allie, and whispered in her ear, "Make a wish." With that, she closed her eyes and blew out them out, smiling largely.

"That took forever." Ashley hissed in to my ear a half an hour later, when we were finally finishing the distribution of cake and ice cream. I just nodded, loading myself up with dished, and bringing them to the sink, and quickly washing a few of them, so that I would have less to do the next day.

I walked the short distance to the living room, where Allie was getting ready to open her presents. As usual, I took a bunch of pictures. This year, she ended up with a bunch of new board games, new D.S. games, stuffed animals, a scooter, and a few coloring books. And, courtesy of Ashley and Michael, a high tech karaoke machine, with a touch screen, which also showed you the lyrics, a small central surround sound, and lights, which flashed different colors. I was pretty sure it might give someone a seizure.

Allie and all of her friends decided that it was karaoke time, and they put together the machine. It was very cute to see all the girls singing. Everyone at the party was gathered around listening. That is when Allie came up to me, grabbed my wrist, and insisted I sing.

"No, Allie, I think I'll just watch." I smiled, getting ready to walk back to my previous spot.

But I was stopped by a chorus of "Rachael! Rachael! Rachael!" I looked around, and found that even Wes had joined in on the crowd's insistence. I sighed, but gave in anyways.

I let Allie choose the song off of Ashley's iPod, which they had plugged in to the machine. After several minutes of searching she finally picked, and I realized it was our song. She had always loved this song, and insisted we listen to it every time we got in the car. Like a Bird by Nelly Furtado.

I couldn't help but smile while I sung. I thought about all the times Allie and I had sung this song, in the car and we would blast the stereo so loud I actually blew a speaker. Maybe Wes, with newly found his mechanical skills, could fix that for me.

When I was done singing, people were silent. I had been under the impression I had sung quite well. Apparently not. My smile diminished.

As I began to walk out of the small circle that had been made for me, people erupted in hoots and hollers, clapping along. I could feel myself blush as I took a spot next to Wes. He looked at me with those big brown pools of chocolate he calls eyes. "I didn't know you could _sing._" He said, dumbfounded. I could tell from his expression that he was serious. Come to think of it, I hadn't ever sung in front of anyone except Ashley and Allie.

I muttered thanks, and proceeded through the rest of the night dancing, laughing, joking, and drinking. This was the second time I had gotten drunk since Allie was born. The last time, Ashley brought me, against my will, to a bar for my birthday. Of course, after a few drinks I had some fun, but this… This was so much different. In a good way.

I don't know what time I went to bed, but it was late… Or early, depending on how you looked at it. All I could comprehend the next morning, maybe afternoon, was my pounding headache. And the light. There was so much light. The slightest noise seemed to ring through my head, ricocheting off the side of my skull and stabbing in to my brain.

I was vaguely aware of a small hand trying to shake me awake. I groaned, rolling over on to my stomach, burying my head in to the pillow. The shaking got more urgent, and my name was being called out so loud I thought my head might explode.

Lifting my head gingerly off the pillow, I opened my eyes to find Allie, happy and awake as ever. "What?" I mumbled through my sleepy haze.

"I'm hungry." She said, pointedly. I sighed, loudly. I swung one leg out of the bed, then the other, both feeling like cement blocks were tied to my feet.

After dumping some cereal in a bowl, and turning the TV on to Disney Channel, with the volume low, I trudged back to bed. I didn't even bother to put the covers back on, I just collapsed in to the bed, letting my heavy eye lids fall shut, and the darkness take me.

_ Her father had been drinking a lot, and she had been hiding like her mommy taught her to do. It was like all the other times this had happened. Her mother went away for a business trip, and her father had told her to go to her room and then pulled out one of the bottles that had the nasty stuff that burned her nose when she got close enough to smell it. She knew it was called vodka._

_She had let her father see her walking to her room, but when he turned away, she went to the hall closet and hid in her secret place. Her mommy had called it a crawlspace. She had put the board that covered it back and turned on the flashlight that hung from a nail on the back wall. It wasn't very big, but she could stand on her knees and could lie down on the floor all the way stretched out, so she thought it was just the right size for a secret hiding place. It also was really comfortable since she had a big blanket to cover the floor and a fluffy pillow in case she needed to sleep in there. She also had her emergency backpack that her mommy had helped her pack._

_She hadn't been in there a long time before the yelling had started. She had only gotten to read two chapters of her favorite Nancy Drew book. Her father had been yelling for her to come out of her room, that he had something to tell her. "Where are you, you little shit? You hidin' again? Did your goddamn Mommy teach you to hide from me? Well? Get your ass out here, brat!"_

_Then she heard someone beside her, calling her name. "Rachael!" This frightened the girl. "Rachael!"_

_Wesley Andrew Carter_

Waking up all too early, with a severe hang over was _not_ my thing. I sat up slowly, trying to reduce a head rush, yet failing anyways. Looking to my right, I saw Rachael, who was fast asleep, breathing slowly. I frowned. She wasn't wearing a blanket, and the thermostat was kept low at night, much to my disliking. After slowly and carefully, as not to wake her, putting her under the covers, I slipped out of the bedroom to find Allie, sitting on the couch with an empty bowl of what I assumed had been cereal, watching the Saturday morning cartoons.

She looked up at me as soon as I had fully entered the room, smiling largely. "Hi, Daddy!" She greeted me, enthusiastically.

I froze. This was the first time she ever actually talked to me, none the less addressed me as Daddy. I liked it. Smiling, I sat next to her, allowing her to crawl up in to my lap.

Kids were always the one thing I had never wanted. I didn't want the responsibility for another child. Having kids with Rachael was the one thing I didn't picture for our lives together. Of course, I hadn't pictured my leaving, either.

Now, looking down at my daughter, I realized that while, yes, it was a responsibility, it was one that I wanted, and almost needed, for my life to be complete. Although I had only known her for such a short period of time, I already felt so much love for Allie, it was almost incomprehensible.

I wondered what I had missed out on in her life. Her first smile, giggle, step, and word? Yes, to it all. I sighed, feeling a familiar guilty feeling in the pit of my stomach. I left Rachael.

"Daddy?" I looked down at the angel in my arms.

"Yeah, baby?"

"I love you."

I was shocked. How could such a sweet caring child love a monster like me? I left her. She looked at me, hurt starting to cloud her features before I smiled softly. "I love you too, Sweet Pea." I kissed the top of her head, lightly, before lifting her out of my lap, and on to the couch. She frowned, a spitting image of Rachael's 'why-the-hell-did-you-do-that?' look displayed on her face. "I'm going to go check on your mommy." I told her.

She nodded, and turned her head back to the TV.

I was always worried about people sleeping. When I was 9, my father died in his sleep. He had sleep apnea, and stopped breathing in the middle of the night. My mom died giving birth to me, and he never remarried, so there was no one there to wake him. I ended up going in to foster care. I have been paranoid ever since.

When I slowly crept in to our… I mean, Rachael's room, I was terrified. She was curled up in to a ball breathing heavily, drenched in sweat.

I tried shaking her, lightly, then harder, but it wasn't working. She had stopped breathing so heavily, now, and instead, was shaking, as if she was scared. "Rachel!" I called. "Rachael!" My voice was urgent, demanding.

At my desperate cries, she awoke, bolting upright, taking in deep grateful lungful's of air. Her tired eyes burned in to mine, showing her scared state.

"You weren't breathing well." I told her, bluntly. She nodded, swinging her legs over the side of the bed in an attempt to get up, not at all fazed by the news. I moved in front of her, pushing her back down on the bed by her shoulders. "That doesn't bother you?" I asked.

She looked up at me. "It was just a bad dream." She shrugged.

"Was it about your dad?" I asked. I remembered she used to have those dreams a lot.

She simply nodded.

"It's okay, Babe." I soothed, freezing suddenly at my word choice.

"Did you just call me Babe?" She smirked. I could feel the heat rising to my cheeks. She caught it right away. She never missed a thing. "No, it's ok. I like it."

I wasn't an extreme romantic, but I could tell this made her happy, and that made me absolutely giddy. I could tell she was uncomfortable, not having taken a shower, so I left the room, and sat with Allie.

"Hi, Daddy!" She said, as excited as always to see me, which confused me a bit.

"Hey, Angel." I replied, plopping down next to her. Even in the short time I had known my daughter, or even of her existence, I had already adopted the pet names, and put them to good use.

She didn't take her eyes off the TV as she addressed me. I looked at it to find it showing a commercial of airplanes for the local airport. Her eyes widened, and a small smile was placed lightly on her pink lips.

"Do you like airplanes?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yep!" She said, popping the p. "Mommy says we are going to go on one soon." I frowned; she hadn't told me anything about a trip anywhere. But then again, I had only been back for 36 hours, how would I know?

"Where are you going?" My curiosity was getting the better of me, and I was doing absolutely nothing to stop it.

"Disney Land!" She said, excitedly. She looked back to the TV, frowning slightly. "Daddy, how do we ride on the plane? Wouldn't we fall off?"

I chuckled, "No. We go in the planes belly." I told her, taking a large chug of water.

"It eats us?" She ask, horrified.

I tried to contain my laughter, but I ended up spraying the water I was drinking out of my mouth, and all over Allie, who looked thoroughly disgusted. "Ewww, Daddy!" She squealed, jumping of my couch, and looking at her drenched shirt.

"Sorry, Princess. And, no, it does not it eat us."

"Then how do we get in?" She asked, tilting her head to the side, like a puppy dog.

"There is a door in the side of the airplane." I explained.

She processed the information for a second before asking, "Like a belly button?"

Figuring this was the best I was going to get of her understanding, I nodded. She smiled, clearly pleased with herself, before running off to her room to get changed out the clothes I had soaked.

Rachael came in the room just in time to see Allie prancing away. Stopping, Rachael watched her leave. Eye brows raised, she looked to me for an answer. "She asked me if the plane ate her, and I might have possibly sprayed my water on her." She smiled, laughing lightly, and then plopping down next to me, handing me a glass of water and some aspirin, to help with the hangover.

"So." She started, waiting for me to start a conversation.

"So…I think we need to get our own place." I blurted.

Her eyes became wide, mouth agape, not saying anything.

What should I have expected? I had just blurted out the one thing I had been thinking about since she accepted me back in to her life. I wanted us to have a place of our own, to call home, and to make our own happy memories in. We had only been back together for like maybe two days. Now she was going to kick me out of her and Allie's lives. The hurt, though it may have been deserved, felt like it had drowned my body, leaving me wishing I could go back in time and say something else, anything else, to make this moment non-existent.

"I...I…I" She was stuttering, something I had never seen or heard her do before. "I need some time to think…" She looked so lost and confused it hurt.

"No, I understand." I said, looking her directly in the eyes, allowing her to read me. Her eyes, the big glowing orbs of green, were burning holes in me. "I want you to make the best decision for you and Allie." I told her earnestly. She nodded. I waited a few minutes before saying, "I need to go."

Her eyes became wide in panic. "Don't leave." She whispered, tears gathering in her eyes, a few tumbling down her face.

"Never." I promised, wiping away a few stray tears. "I'm going to go look for some job openings, and get a few applications." I said.

Her sigh of relief was the most comforting thing in the world to me at the moment. She still wanted me; she wasn't rejecting me or kicking me out. She was just overwhelmed. I could feel my heart rate slowing just at the mere thought.

"I do love you, Wes. This is all so sudden, though. I don't think I am ready." She explained.

"I know. I understand, love. Be back soon, alright?" She nodded, eyes still wet with tears.

"Here!" She said, a bit louder. I turned to find a pair of keys flying at me. Catching them just before they hit my face, I thanked her, not even realizing until now that not only didn't I have a car, but the city had grown a considerable amount since the last time I had been here, and I had no idea where anything was anymore. "Just turn on the Navigation System and tell it where you want to go. It will tell you the directions." She paused. "By the way, its name is Lo-La." I scoffed.

She had a Navigation System that not only talked to you, but had the name Lo-La? I shook my head, thanking her again.

Starting down the street, it was all too quiet. Rachael lived in a nice neighborhood. The kind with the kids riding their bikes down the street, the birds swooping in the blue sky, a few white fluffy cloudy placed artistically here and there. Turning on the stereo, I was appalled at how horrible it sounded. She had blown out the passenger seat stereo, and had run the rest of them to their last song.

I would have to fix that for her. Then, as I pressed down gently on the touchy brakes, the song, which was playing quietly in the background, changed. Experimentally, I let off the gas for a millisecond, and then applied the smallest amount of pressure, making the car crawl forward. The song changed again. I sighed. Her car had issues.

The day ended with much more success than I would have hope. With 3 interviews arranged 5 job applications, and an on-the-spot job offer, which I said I would think about, I made my way home. I mean, to Rachael's house.

Should I call it home? I really had no idea, and I didn't want to ask Rachael, in fear of pressuring her. It was getting dark by the time I finally rounded the final corner to Rachael's house.

This was why it was so easy to see the flashing red and blue lights the light up Rachael's driveway.

_Rachael Alexis Parker_

"Are you sure you're alright, ma'am?" One of the paramedics asked me again, as they checked me over in the back of an ambulance.

"I am fine." I told him, pointedly, in a way I hoped was convincing. Honestly, I was really sore, I couldn't seem to stop coughing and my side where he threw me in to the coffee table was killing me. I just really didn't want a trip to the hospital, where they would only tell me to rest up. "Is Allie OK?"

"She's fine." An officer told me, walking up the drive. I coughed again, trying to be too suspicious. "She wasn't even touched." I nodded, thanking god. "Do you know your attacker?"

I nodded. "Yeah, he is my ex-boyfriend from almost 9 years ago. Shayne. He never really got over…" I was cut off by a loud masculine voice yelling my name. I let out another horrible cough, which absolutely killed my side. I looked over to find Wes, navigating his way through police cars, ambulances, and traffic safety cones.

When he reached me, he looked me thoroughly up and down before demanding if I was alright. I nodded, exasperated. Then he grabbed me in to a big hug, squeezing me slightly, as if his life depended on it. Even though I tried to keep it in, a small whimper escaped me lips, followed by yet another cough.

Instantly, he let me go, and took a large step back. I knew he was talking to me, but I couldn't really comprehend what he was saying. What I could comprehend was the stabbing pain in my side, and my slowly decreasing ability to breath.

His hands went on my shoulders, shaking me slightly. I looked up, trying to focus on his face. I could tell he was calling my name, so I tried to listen. "Rachael! Are you OK? Rachael!"

Trying not to alarm him, I forced a smile, and started to say yes, when I was caught in a horrible coughing fit that racked through my entire body, making my side feel as if someone were stabbing me. Covering my mouth, as not to cough all over Wes, I kept coughing, which alerted the paramedics that something was up.

I felt the warm, sticky liquid, in my hands, trickling down my arms. Blood. As I looked at it, my eyes were ready to bulge out of my head. I was coughing up blood. As soon as I came to this realization, I began another fit of coughing, this time, so violent that it actually caused me to bend over, in both pain and uncontrollable spasms that racked through my body. And blood spattered everywhere, including Wes.

Then it hit me. I was going to die. I was going to be ripped from my Allie. And Wes, my sweet love Wesley. If…. No, when. When I wake up, we are going to get our own place. After we fix the damage Shayne did to the house. I suppose I might have helped put a few holes in the walls, trying to punch him in the face, and a few picture frames shattered on the floor might be from me, but it really wasn't my fault. Not really.

And I had my mind made up. I was going to live, that way I could live my life full and long, growing old with Wes, watching Allie, and hopefully our other children having kids of their own. Maybe we would have a little boy, with Wes's hair, eyes, and teeth, and my nose, lips, and cheekbones. He would be so handsome.

I was vaguely aware of being placed quickly in to an ambulance, and being jerked around a bit as they raced down the highway, but it was mostly blurs of lights and people talking to me. Not that I had any idea what they were saying, or what they wanted from me. I was wheeled everywhere, facing the bright lights. I was awake, I think.

Then, there was a bunch of wires attached to me and annoyingly high-pitched beeping noises from the monitors. Someone, I'm not sure who, was standing over me, wearing a mask, and a gaudy blue sterile suit. They told me something, which sounded like a slurred unintelligible intellect. And then it was black.

I could feel myself emerging from the depths of my comfortable black hole, where I had stayed for God knows how long. Then I struggled to open my eyes against the haze that was the medication they had given me for the pain. It was obviously wearing off, because, on the contrary, I was in a lot of pain.

My side, where I was now positive they had done surgery, was a searing, itchy, and deep stabbing pain. Meanwhile, my headache, which I assumed was not only a headache, but migraine, was agonizing and my back, which had been slammed in to walls repeatedly, was positively killing me.

But I wasn't dead.

Opening my eyes, slowly adjusting to the bright lights, I saw I was in a small cramped hospital room. My first coherent thought was _Oww_.

Looking around, I saw Wes, sitting on a bedside chair, head rested on the edge of my very uncomfortable and somewhat itchy bed. Then, Allie, curled up with her pink unicorn in a small cot in the far corner, which really wasn't that far away. I frowned. I really wish she didn't have to see me like this.

Over in one of two stuffed yet hard chairs sat the sappy, mushy and lovesick Ashley and Michael. Of course, they couldn't have a whole chair to _themselves_. So they were forced, I'm sure, to share, which involved Ashley sitting sideways on Michael's lap, knees down dangling off the side of the chair.

I wondered briefly how Wes managed to get the attending nurse to allow all of them to spend the night. Working at this hospital, I knew that there were only allowed to be 2 people staying overnight at the most. Then my light bulb went off. His charm, the eyes, not kiss-ass, but just sexy enough to drive a girl crazy, then the oh-so-tempting persuasiveness of his strong voice, and it always got him whatever he wanted… Out of a girl, at least. It was amusing, to say the least, to watch him try his charm with a guy.

Trying to sigh, content, I realized for the first time, that I had a breathing tube shoved down my throat. And for some reason, I couldn't let it go. Even knowing it would breathe for me, I still struggled against it, causing me to choke, my body trying to expel itself of the foreign object.

As my body heaved, attempting to get the tube out, Wes had woken up in a very sexy panic, pressing the button to the nurses' station. A fat nurse, taking her own sweet time walking in, and over to my bed, looked me and my clip board over and said she would be back with the doctor in a few minutes.

I could see Wes's face turn in to a very suitable are-you-fucking-kidding-me look. Funny, I noticed these things even as I felt as though I might throw up, even knowing it wasn't possible. I hadn't eaten in… Well, since the night of the party, whenever that was. I had no idea how long I was out.

The doctor, who picked up the pace when he saw me, my body heaving heavily attempting to rid itself of the tube. By this time, Ashley and Michael were up, trying to calm a completely hysterical Allie, who couldn't handle seeing others in pain of suffering. She was very empathetic.

They removed the tube slowly, like I had seen them do to others, ever so slowly. My throat was sore, and scratchy. "Thanks." I whispered my voice raw.

Wes, now fully awake and alert, squeezed my hand, which I now realized he hadn't let go of. "Hey, sweetie. How do you feel?" He asked. As soon as he called me sweetie, the heart monitor spiked for a second, then went right back down. He chuckled.

"I've… Been better." I answered. This was, at least true. "How about you?" My voice sounded like crap.

He snorted. "You were the one, who was attacked by your psycho ex-boyfriend, who I might add broke the living room window to get in to the house. Then he threw you around, breaking through the sheet rock. I am impressed though. You broke his nose and wrist, and then gave him a concussion." He smiled, apparently proud that I had enough strength in my said fragile-looking body to do that much damage to a fairly large person.

"He wasn't going to get Allie." I told him, seriously.

"He would have to go through me, first. Which I seriously doubt he could." What is it with men and their big inflated egos?

I smiled. I knew he loved Allie, but it was still comforting to hear.

6 Months Later

_Wesley Andrew Carter_

Rachael's freak attack still scared the shit out of me. But she really didn't want to hear it. We had a fight or two about me being too over protective with my alpha male tendencies. But, in all fairness, I was the man of the house now, and it was my job. Her argument, however, won over my position as man-of-the-house.

One night, during a particularly nasty fight, she finally broke from her usually calm state, and yelled at me, letting it all out. She said she knew that I was worried about her, and just wanted the best for her, but that I was going to lose her again if I could back off a bit. I guess I might have been a little paranoid, now that I think about it. I wouldn't even let her walk from the house to the car, and I insisted on dropping her off and picking her up from work. Of course, her threat mortified me, and so I did as I was told, but I was still hovering a bit.

Maybe it was fate that night, when Rachael broke her ribs. Traumatic, yes. Scary as shit, yes. But it made her realize that she wanted to be with me, too. So, she took the trip to Disney Land with Allie, while I sold her old house, and put some touches on the large house we bought. Together. I wanted her to see it like I did in my vision, where all the final details were added, and it was perfect.

So I had Ashley decorate Allie's room, with no butterflies, as she still screamed bloody murder whenever one so much as flew by. I used most of the furniture from the old house, but bought some new, to add to the magical feeling of a new home. I made sure to use a color scheme that Rachael picked out, and she loved it.

As a guy, I had absolutely no "fashion sense" as Rachael called it, and so I was forced to call Ashley to help. We had come to an understanding when it came to having to throw parties. Rachael had thrown 4 since I had come back. And Ashley helped with _every single one_. She did the cooking; I did the hard sweaty work. I was forbidden from the kitchen, she wasn't allowed near the garage. I was our system, and it worked.

Allie started kindergarten, and during the sign up, I was pleased to learn that not only did she possess my last name, but also bore the middle name of my mother; Carissa.

So, now, as Rachael sat on the couch flipping through a Home Living magazine, while I attempted to hook a new Blu Ray player to the T.V., I felt oddly at peace. It was almost normal. And that was strange, and mildly fishy. There was always something interrupting our day, whether it is a call from the school nurse saying that Allie at the chicken pox, or the basement, A.K.A. my man cave, flooding.

I continued on with my work, looking over at Amy every once in a while, admiring her beauty. The way her eye brows scrunched together whenever she was concentrating on something in particular, or her lips pursed whenever she saw something she didn't like. And then the startled look on her face as the front door flew open, someone flying through the threshold, and in to her arms, sobbing.

At first, for one horrible second, I thought the tortured cries were coming from Allie's small body. But then, I realized this person had blonde hair, Allie was at school, and this person was Ashley. She was sobbing, and obviously, I was missing something, because Rachael seemed to have some kind of understanding as to why Ashley was in hysterics.

Rachael hugged Ashley to her small frame, telling her it was okay, and rubbing her back soothingly. "No, it's not!" Ashley wailed. I was so confused. Rachael looked up at me, giving me The Look, meaning that she loved me, but I needed to leave

I nodded, and went to go check my email. I managed to get respond to every email before Rachael knocked on the door, beckoning me out. I followed her out in to the living room, where I saw Rachael laying asleep on the couch, her tear stained face still uneasy, in even in her slumber. I almost felt bad. Almost. Then I remembered the time she ran my foot over with her car, and then laughed at me when I yelled in pain.

I looked at Rachael, who had a sympathetic look on her face. "She has been trying to get pregnant for 2 years now. "She told me. "The test was negative again."

It all clicked, now. All the gawking over babies, her obsession over them, the crying, Rachael whispering in to the phone at night when she thought I was asleep. Of course, I was once again convinced she was cheating on me. She told me she wasn't, and she was telling the truth, I could tell by her eyes. But she still didn't tell me what she was talking about, and that drove me up the wall. "Oh." I responded, lamely. "Why don't they just try again?"

"Wes, they've been trying for _two years. _They've gone to the doctors. They have done everything they can. I think she is done with the disappointment. "She whispered, trying not to wake her up.

"Wait." I said, looking from Ashley to Rachael. "They were trying to get pregnant before they were married?" I asked. Usually people tried _not_ to get pregnant before they were married. Obviously, that didn't always work. Allie was living proof, though I would never call her a mistake.

"I guess." She shrugged. We both looked down at Ashley, who was now starting a soft snore. Then suddenly, Rachael grabbed my hand, and pulled me in to the kitchen.

"What are you doing?" I asked, as the rummaged through a pile of papers she had on the counter.

"Look." She said, pointing to a picture.

I looked at the piece of paper, grabbing it and bringing it closer to my face so that I could make out the picture.

I frowned. "What's this for."

"This," she started, excitedly," Is hopefully going to become my own practice." The smile on her face was brilliant.

"That's wonderful!" I exclaimed, bringing her in to a kiss, which she broke off quickly, much to my disappointment.

"And this," She said, snatching another piece of paper off the granite counter tops," Is going to be your auto shop… If you want…" She finished, shyly.

"If I… If I want? Of course!" I smiled, picking her up and swinging her around so that she giggled like a little girl. "This is amazing! When did you get this idea?"

"When I got a new boss at work who _hates_ me. And when you started bitching that your boss wouldn't let you have that weekend off. I figured it might be better to start our own places, if we are unhappy where we are at. And get this. They are only a block apart from each other. We could meet up for lunch, or whatever. This will be _great_!"

About halfway through her speech, I realized a possible obstacle. "How are we going to pay for this?" I asked.

She stopped, smiling at me. "You're kidding, right?" I shook my head, because, honestly, I had _no idea_ what she was talking about. "You haven't noticed the somewhat large chunk of money that goes missing from our paychecks every month?" I shook my head. Was she crazy? I didn't mess around with the bills or checks.

"No. Every time I so much as look at the mail…" I stopped mid-sentence, due to the glare I received from Rachael. "Anyways, go on."

"My point is, I have been saving up for something big like this from years and I started drafting money from your paycheck in to the same account, so that maybe someday we could do something…big." She finished lamely. I snorted. "Shut up."

"Sorry, Baby. But this… This is great!"

"You know what else is great?" She asked. I shook my head, yet again. This woman would never cease to amaze me. "This." And she handed me the deed to my new auto shop. Along with the receipt for all the tools and other machinery I would need.

"You, my dear, are amazing." And I did something I should have done 7 years ago.

Feeling around in my pocket for the box I kept with me for 7 years, I slowly pulled it out, and got down on to one knee. She gasped. "Rachael Alexis Parker, you are the most amazing woman I have ever met, and I love you with every ounce of me. Will you marry me?" I opened the box to reveal a simple silver ring with 3 small diamonds studded in it.

She bit her lip to keep herself from smiling like an idiot. She nodded, letting out a small laugh. I slipped the ring on to her finger, pleased that it fit, and brought her in to a passionate kiss. And, as usual, it was interrupted, this time, by the phone ringing. She let out a huff, running a hand through her hair and retreating to grab the wretched thing.

"Hello?" She answered. "Yeah, she's on my couch." She listened to the voice that I now assumed was Michael's. "Um… Well, the thing is…" She looked apologetic as she ran a nervous hand through her hair once again. "Michael, the test was negative. She's not pregnant." She listened for a few more seconds. "Yeah, okay. See you in a bit… M'kay. Bye."

She shoved the phone none too lightly back on the receiver, then leaned back against the wall, and covered her face with her hands. "What's wrong, Babe?" I asked her, rubbing her arms gently, coaxing them to her side, exposing her beautiful face.

"You should have heard him Wes. He was heart-broken." She mumbled in to my shirt. I couldn't tell you how long we stood there, holding each other. But all too soon, I heard the front door open, and walked in to the living room to find Michael watching his sleeping wife. I noted that he had a few unspilled tears lingering dangerously in his eyes, and was about to tease him for it before I thought better of it.

I watched silently as he gently picked her up and carried her out to the car, mumbling a quick thanks as I shut the door behind him. Poor guy.

A few weeks had passed by rather quickly, in my opinion. Ashley had recovered from her bout of depression, the aftermath of the negative test.


End file.
